"At Bellefontaine, Ohio, wives of railroad men provided free lunch to every soldier passing through town on the New York Central Railroad. For 45 months around the clock, over 700,000 soldiers were nourished with donated food served by unpaid volunteers on the station platforms.

"The volunteer canteen workers showed incredible spirit and selfless sacrifice, which became the rallying point for the community. Ladies all over town and in the rural areas made baked goods; pies, cakes, cookies and cooked food without hesitation. Sandwiches were made by the basket full. Sunday school classes, high school and grade school classes, ladies clubs, grange members, farmers, even groups of employees from local merchants and manufacturers stepped forward to help in any way they could. From 1942 to 1946, they served soldiers passing through on furlough, troop trains, hospital trains, and even the P.O.W. trains were humbly served."